First off, I apologize to my friends and roleplay partners who've been left hanging. Any desire to cancel old threads is completely understandable.

I've been struggling with a serious health issue the past several months. There was a long period where things would seem to improve only to relapse, delaying things further. All that aside, just wanted to let people know I'm around again and to contact me via PM or Trillian - ironsoldier, if anyone wants to get things going again.

Risako clenched her teeth as she leaned backwards, pulling hard on Chris' trapped arm even as she heard the American's agonized scream. In any other match, Risako wouldn't have poured so much pressure into the armbar-- there were limits she knew not to cross, as any submission hold had a chance of hospitalizing a wrestler-- or worse, ending their career-- if used too strongly. Chris, however, had made it plain time and again that she didn't care about the rules of the ring, or the dignity of her fellow wrestlers. And so Risako ignored the screams as she leaned back, eyes screwed shut as her muscles tensed, wrenching at Chris' arm with enraged abandon.

She was dimly aware of Chris pulling the two of them across the ring, Risako's butt sliding a short distance against the mat, but it wasn't until the ref tapped her on the shoulder that she noticed that Chris had gotten a boot on the bottom rope. Taking a deep breath, Risako unwound her limbs from around Chris' arm and stood up. She still felt the embers of raw rage in her heart, however, pulsing alongside the throbbing in her back. Without warning, she stomped down as she stood to her full height, slamming her heel down against Chris' recently-released arm.

"That's for my back," she hissed, before swiping a booted heel across Chris' forehead. At that moment, the ref girl came up to her and told her to watch it. "Alright, alright, fine!" she growled at the ref, reluctantly being forced to back away from Chris as she lay stricken on the mat. Her eyes flashed with barely restrained anger as she looked at her downed opponent: it was no longer about simply defeating Chris. Risako needed to punish her, to make her regret ever stepping into the ring with her again.

Chris gave a howl of pain as the vindictive Risako drove her boot down on her arm, sending a jolt of pure agony racing along the limb. The kick across her forehead added insult to grievous injury before the referee decided to step in and make the Japanese woman back away.

Immediately Chris rolled out of the ring, cradling the wounded limb, while the referee was busy with the Panther. Ignoring the jeering crowd, she tried to flex her left arm, only to have to grit her teeth against a surge of pain from her elbow.

My arm! It's...what, dislocated? Hyperextended? Broken maybe? she thought in a moment of panic. The more logical part of mind informed her that the limb couldn't be broken, seeing how there was no snap, nor was the limb oddly shaped. That was of little relief to Chris however....

She heard the referee start to count loudly, starting at "One!"Now the blonde had a decision to make. She could leave, take the countout loss and retreat to the back. Chris looked up at Risako as she stalked about the ring, looking every bit like the jungle cat whose name she had chosen as one of her monikers. Every rational part of her brain urged her to leave, to go to the back and get her arm looked at. It was the sane, smart, and logical thing to do. However, anger and wounded pride washed away that thought. She was through running. From Risako, from the other Wrestle Angels, the fans, all of them. If she ran now, then how seriously would people like Hibiki Izayoi take her? No...she wasn't leaving.

With that decided, Chris took her time, knowing rushing back into the ring to engage Risako was foolish in the extreme at this point. Not that staying behind and fighting while wounded was exactly a genius move either, but if one was going to do something insane, one might as well be smart about it.

The count reached six as Chris began to stride over to one of the sets of steps leading up to the ring and made it to the edge of the canvas. Knowing Risako would be anxious to press her advantage, Chris wave a hand at her dismissively.

"Keep her back ref! She can't rush me until I'm in the ring!" she called, trying to wear down Risako's patience.

Risako watched silently as Chris rolled out of the ring, putting the ropes and the referee between herself and further punishment at Risako's hands. A slight look of irritation crossed Risako's features as the ref girl again prevented her from following, and all she could do was watch from the centre of the ring as Chris rolled outside.

It quickly became apparent that the earlier armbar had done quite a number on Chris: the Phenomenon was now clutching her shoulder as though in agony, and the arm she had attacked earlier was now hanging limply. Risako couldn't tell if the arm was broken or merely hyperextended from this angle, but it made no difference: that was one less arm she now had to deal with. Slowly but surely, Chris was losing this war.

She paced back and forth, looking again like a tense jungle cat as she waited for Chris to get into the ring. She would pause as Chris began to step through the ropes: the moment Chris was through, though, Risako would lunge, bringing her leg up to feint a snap-kick at Risako's face. At the last minute, however, she would spin, aiming instead to hammer an elbow into Chris' chest before reaching up for her hair, dropping down and snapmaring her hard into the mat!

Chris was wary of Risako as she made her way back into the ring. Sure enough, as soon as the American was back inside the ropes, the Panther was on the move rushing at the taller blonde.

The Californian was also moving towards Risako. Knowing that her former flame loved using those lethal legs of hers, Chris was intent on not giving her the space or time to bring them to bear. She lunged forward, lashing out with her right foot, extending her leg fully in a Yakuza kick aimed at Risako's face just before the Japanese woman was about to spin as Chris used her longer limbs to her advantage, attacking the Panther while she was still out of range for her own strikes, but still within the American's....

Risako's purple hair flowed like a violet mane behind her as she charged, spinning gracefully as she launched herself at Risako. She was hoping to use her speed to her advantage, to hurt Chris before she could react, keep her nice and stunned, and then just keep hammering her until she couldn't fight back anymore. For all of the Californian's stamina, even she had her limits, as Risako knew from experience. She was going to break Chris for a second time in the ring, and give her a defeat she would remember.

In her angry eagerness to get to grips with her foe, though, Risako forgot that Chris had learned too-- Chris' boot suddenly swiped up, slamming into Risako's face. "AUGH!" she cried, the blow snapping her head back and causing her to lose her footing, sending her crashing onto her back in a stunned heap. She groaned, blinking as colours danced across her vision, leaving her vulnerable for several crucial seconds...

The crowd's cheers immediately turned into a loud "Ohhhh!" of shock and sympathy for Risako as Chris's kick connected.

However, the American gasped as a jolt of pain ran through her arm and shoulder which she had moved while delivering the kick. She had to end this, and soon. If Risako got a hold of that arm again, Chris knew she could intense and lasting damage to the limb. But both of her finishers required using both of her arms.

Who says a match has to end with a finishing move? We've both taken a beating here. Maybe all it takes is a big enough move... Chris thought to herself as she looked down at Risako.

Quickly, while pressing her left arm to her side, the blonde reached down with her right, her hand going to the Asian's throat. With a snarl, she would try to forcibly pull the Panther up to a standing position. Continuing to hold onto her purple haired foe, Chris would gather her strength for a second before giving a loud yell of effort and trying to lift Risako up off the mat, looking to try a one armed chokeslam while the Queen's senses were still hopefully scrambled....

Risako's legs were kicking weakly against the mat as she clutched her face, her skull vibrating from Chris' surprise kick. In the background, she could hear her fans cheering and stomping, urging her to get back up. She shook her head, furiously trying to shake away the dizziness. She was so close to a victory now, she could feel it. She couldn't afford to let Chris snatch that away from her like this.

She was still battling the dizziness, however, when she felt Chris' hand suddenly clamp around her throat. "Ughk!" she gagged in surprise as she felt herself being lifted off the mat. Opening her eyes, Risako saw a pained yet determined Chris standing in front of her, holding her up by one hand while her other arm dangled limply by her side. In a feat of strength that was impressing even Risako, Chris was holding her up on one hand, lifting her so that her feet dangled off the mat.

Risako knew what was coming. Meeting Chris' angry glare with one of her own, Risako gritted her teeth, pawing at Chris' arm with one hand while snapping punch after punch into her face with the other, all the while her legs kicked uselessly in the air. It was all or nothing-- she had to stop Chris' next move, or she was done for.

Chris took the time to look Risako in the eyes as she held her aloft. She wanted Risako to know the position she was in. To have that sense of defeat that she had at the end of their last match together. However, the Japanese woman was resilient.

The Panther bared her claws, striking again and again at Chris's face. The repeated blows took their toll on the bigger American, making her yell out in mixture of surprise, pain and anger. One of blows split her lip, and Chris tasted her own blood. But her hand might as well have cast from iron, for despite Risako's efforts, it would not relent from it's grasp from the Asian's throat.

Chris fully extended her arm up, putting her face out of Risako's striking range. Then with a loud yell, she hurled the Queen of Queens to the canvas, back first, with all of the strength she had left in her body! After delivering the move, an unsteady Chris dropped to her knees before draping her body down over Risako's going for a pin.

Risako's fist rained down, again and again, on Chris' face, each blow feeling like her knuckles were being ground against a wall. Sweat sprayed, and Risako saw one of her blow's split Chris' lip and draw blood. But Chris stubbornly held Risako aloft, refusing to drop her despite the vicious pummeling the Queen of Queens was giving her. Risako unleashed all of her pent up fury on the Californian, and it simply wasn't enough.

And then, with a sudden downward surge, Risako was hurled downward, and everything was pain as she struck the mat.

Her lithe body arched, briefly, as a silent cry of agony formed on her lips. The next thing she knew, Chris was draping her body across hers for a pin. The audience screamed as the countdown began, but Risako was immobile, eyes screwed shut as her spine throbbed.

"Two!" the referee called, her hand slapping the canvas again for the second time.

Come on, come on. Just one more! Chris silently urged the referee, who seemed, to the Californian anyway, to be taking forever to count to three. She was slumped over Risako, chest pressing down against her foe's, looking more as if she had fallen on the Japanese woman instead of intentionally trying to pin her to the mat. The blonde couldn't even hook the Panther's leg, seeing how she'd have to move her wounded left arm and shoulder to do so.

The crowd yelled even louder as the ref lifted her hand for the third and final count, trying to rally Risako!